Getting his truck off this mountainside was going to be a nightmare for someone. But that wasn’t his problem.
“Special equipment will have to be brought in for that. I hope you have good insurance. You can make the arrangements.”
Or maybe it was his problem. He turned his focus to Rae, and she tucked a blanket around the both of them. Their combined body heat would keep them warmer. Fulfilling Rae’s request to keep her safe and help her find Zoey was already costing them both.
And the price was still rising.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
7:46 p.m.
Emerald M Guest Ranch
Rae sat in front of the huge fire, covered in a blanket, watching the flames and letting them mesmerize her. After the day she’d had, her body was bruised, her brain was fried, and she felt dazed. So she stared.
For a few moments she could pretend all was well with the world. That Zoey was home safe and sound and nothing out of the ordinary had taken place a few days ago. That Rae’s sitting in this ranch home belonging to Liam McKade’s family was also perfectly normal.
Evelyn approached and set a cup of hot tea on the coffee table. “Are you all right?”
Rae pulled her gaze from the flames. “I’m going to be.” She was a writer, but she couldn’t form the right words. “I wish I could thank you enough and express my gratitude.”
The older woman’s warm smile edged on incredulous. “I’ve done nothing anyone else wouldn’t do, hon. But if there’s nothing more I can do, I need to get ready for my date.”
“Date?” Rae perked up. She leaned forward and grabbed the tea.
“Well, don’t act so surprised. Besides, my son, Leroy, is going too.”
Rae almost choked on her tea. “On your date with you?”
Evelyn laughed. “Well, it’s a group outing, really. We’re going on a moonlit park ranger–guided snowshoeing hike. That’s a mouthful.”
“Don’t worry. I caught it. So, you’re going snowshoeing at night?”
“Yes. It should be beautiful.” Evelyn puffed a pillow and repositioned it on another chair. “Please let me know if I can do anything else.”
She headed for the door leading to her attached private cabin.
Evelyn was such a sweet lady. Liam had explained that Heath had hired her several years ago to work for him, but she and Leroy were more like family to the McKades. Meeting the woman, she totally got that. From what Rae knew of their childhood growing up, the brothers probably needed the extra encouragement a sweet-souled, grandmotherly person like Evelyn brought them.
Rae was exhausted and should have gone to bed, but her mind wouldn’t shut down. She and Liam had given their statements and shared everything they knew about what had happened on that treacherous mountain road today. She shuddered as she remembered.
Because of the twisted angle of the switchback and the danger, only one person had caught sufficient video of the Hummer from behind. But no image of the driver. Add to that, muddy snow had covered the bumper and concealed the license plate.
She shook her head.
Rae thought back to her and Liam’s conversation with Sheriff Taggart as he sat across from them—both of them still traumatized after their near-death battle in the gorge. The sheriff had directed his words at Rae. She could still feel his anger—not at her, but at the situation—washing over her as he spoke.
“Right now, we have questions and no answers. We have theories. Astor could have a motive for kidnapping or harming a woman who might have killed his brother. But we have no evidence.” The sheriff rubbed his face. “Quite frankly, you’re too close to this to see anything clearly. I’d suggest you go home, but I won’t waste my breath.”
“Obviously, Sheriff, someone thinks I’m on the right track. How do you explain what’s happened to me?”
“Exactly the reason you should go home and leave this to law enforcement agencies.”
“You told me the mayor shut you down, Sheriff,” Liam said. “You encouraged me. Knew that I was going to keep digging.”
“I know what I said, but things keep changing by the hour, it seems.” He got up and paced behind his desk. “The state’s involvement has escalated with the incident this afternoon. The mayor wouldn’t expect me to stand down at this point.”
“If we can figure out who the masked man is, that would help since he’s tied to Astor.” Liam tapped his fingers on the sheriff’s desk. “We can go after Astor from that angle. Even